Disrupted Signaling and Disease: International Metabolism Conference at the German Cancer Research Center
Scientists from around the globe will convene at the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) on November 15th – 16th, 2012 to discuss the links between a disrupted metabolism and various diseases. The conference “Metabolism 2012: From Signaling to Disease” is part of an annual forum series organized in Heidelberg by the DKFZ-ZMBH Alliance, which is a strategic alliance between the German Cancer Research Center (DKFZ) and the Center for Molecular Biology (ZMBH) at Heidelberg University. Professor Stephan Herzig, who heads a joint research department of DKFZ, ZMBH and Heidelberg University Hospital on diabetes and cancer, leads conference organization.
Brown fat cells within white fat tissue
© dkfz.de
Disrupted signal transduction pathways cause various metabolic disorders such as obesity and diabetes. In diabetes, for example, the insulin signal that tells the cell via its insulin receptor to take up glucose from the bloodstream does not function. This results in a dramatic rise of the blood sugar levels, which causes damage to a number of organs. Chronically increased calorie intake and resulting obesity is associated with excessive production of signaling substances that attract highly active immune cells, which ultimately leads to metabolic malfunctions in various tissues. Disrupted signaling pathways and resulting disruptions in metabolism are more common with increasing age. They are not only the cause of severe metabolic disorders such as diabetes and arteriosclerosis but also a characteristic or even the cause of a number of cancers.
“We have invited the world’s best scientists in this exciting field to Heidelberg to cover the entire spectrum of this topic – from the basics through to treatment ideas,” said Stephan Herzig prior to the conference. Thus, there will be lectures about insulin signaling pathways in Drosophila just as about inflammatory signals in obesity. Differences between brown and white fat tissue will be covered just as the role of the innate immune system in energy metabolism. On Friday, there will be sessions dealing with questions of how disrupted metabolic pathways lead to cancer and how this knowledge may be used for novel treatments.
The Manfred Lautenschläger Foundation and the Klaus Tschira Foundation generously support the conference.
Journalists are welcome to attend the conference. For the conference program please go to http://www.dkfz.de/en/metabolism-2012/program.html
With more than 3,000 employees, the German Cancer Research Center (Deutsches Krebsforschungszentrum, DKFZ) is Germany’s largest biomedical research institute. DKFZ scientists identify cancer risk factors, investigate how cancer progresses and develop new cancer prevention strategies. They are also developing new methods to diagnose tumors more precisely and treat cancer patients more successfully. The DKFZ's Cancer Information Service (KID) provides patients, interested citizens and experts with individual answers to questions relating to cancer.
To transfer promising approaches from cancer research to the clinic and thus improve the prognosis of cancer patients, the DKFZ cooperates with excellent research institutions and university hospitals throughout Germany:
The DKFZ is 90 percent financed by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research and 10 percent by the state of Baden-Württemberg. The DKFZ is a member of the Helmholtz Association of German Research Centers.
